Missing
by ShannonTheAwesomeOne
Summary: "For the following 274 days, Sophia was with Roxanne. They grew to depend on each other; Sophia needed Roxanne's wisdom and comfort while Roxanne needed Sophia to pull her out of her emotional shell. They bonded. They became a mother and daughter. That isn't going to change anytime soon." Eventual Daryl / OC
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own The Walking Dead.

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**"The natural state of motherhood is unselfishness. When you become a mother, you are no longer the center of your own universe. You relinquish that position to your children."** _Jessica Lange_

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"Mama Bear, do you copy? Over."

_It had been a long day for the small group. They were nitpicking through store after store in a small god forsaken town and they weren't finding much. Almost everything they found was either expired, broken or empty. _

"…Seriously, Dan? I thought I told you no nicknames. And no using the walkie talkie unless it's an emergency!"

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_Daniel Swartz. Tall and white. Big blue eyes with a shaggy head of dirty blonde hair. He was gonna be a doctor, y'know. One of those child prodigy's. He was fresh out of med school when the apocalypse hit. Poor guy had potential to do great things; but he still keeps a smile on his face, despite all of the hardships he's dealt with. As long as there is a person he can help, he's good as gold. _

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"At least humor me. …No, Jay. We don't need those! Ugh… Oh yeah, remember to say over at the end of your message, over!"

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_Jordan Lawson. Goes by the name Jay. She's a tall, pretty woman with long ginger hair and green eyes. She was an artist, the kind that just makes enough money to get by comfortably with some drawbacks here and there. She's a bit of a weirdo; OCD and Anxiety. She's got her fair share of demons that won't leave her alone. She's pretty quiet, you always wonder what's going on in her devious little mind. But she's quite smart. She thinks up plans on the fly and continues to amaze the group with her revolutionizing modern ways into apocalyptic ways._

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"Cut the shit. You're lucky that we killed the biters. Now, I suggest you give me a good reason why you're contacting me._ …Over._"

"Now, that's the spirit! And I'm contacting you to let you know that we found two men, over."

"…And why the hell didn't you just say you found blood pumpers in the first place!?"

"…Sorry, Mama Bear. We're in the pharmacy- No, Elliot! Stay behind the counter! And you, Asian guy, shut up! Save your whining for when Roxy gets here! Uh, can you maybe hurry it up Roxanne? We need you!"

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_Elliot McIntyre. Cute kid; bright blonde hair and blue eyes. His dad was a looker too, a lawyer. Poor fool got himself killed though, leaving the kid in Dan and Jay's care; they don't mind though. He's a tough kid, deep down. He knows the difference between right and wrong and he even learned a couple things during his time with this group; how to read and write. Yeah, the kid is only 6 years old._

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At the sound of a scuffle in the background on the walkie talkie, Roxanne knew she had to get there fast; blood pumpers were dangerous. She tossed the rest of the supplies she found in the stock room into her backpack and turned to her small companion with a frown marring her face;

"C'mon, Blondie. We gotta get over there." And with that, the two were off running toward the pharmacy. It felt like forever, but they got there just in time to see two men, a hic and asian, standing off against Dan and Jay with guns raised. Or, in the hic's case, a crossbow.

"Look, we don't want no trouble. You got a kid and you're protecting him, I get that. But we don't wanna hurt ya. Just back off." The white man with messy brown hair stated, glaring at Dan through his cross hairs. The lanky Asian boy was looking between the two men with a look of uncertainty, which quickly turned into a look of surprise when he noticed the presence of two more people, though his attention was mainly focused on the woman with a crossbow in her hands.

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_Roxanne Miller. Short and petite with shoulder length brown hair that almost looked black and piercing blue eyes. She was a professional criminal; a thief. Paintings, jewelery, artifacts… You name it, she's probably stole one and made a butt-load of money off of it. In fact, a painting was the reason why she was in Atlanta when the Zombie Apocalypse started. Her contact, Josh, told her about a famous painting that was being shipped from France to a museum in California. The plane that held the painting stopped in Atlanta, where Roxanne put her plan into action and, well… took the painting. By the time she got to her fence, AKA the person who would buy the painting, she found him zombified in his apartment. Anyways… Roxanne is a rather serious individual. She's modest and doesn't exactly do thievery for the money. Well, yes she does it for the money. But she mostly does it for the thrill. She's a thief, of course she's a thrill seeker._

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"Roxanne, thank god! Hey, redneck, I suggest you talk to our boss and put down the damn bow." Dan exclaimed, greeting the disheveled brunette with a nod. Roxanne quickly brought up her crossbow and pointed it at the redneck.

"So, a redneck and an Asian walk into a bar…" She scoffed, snickering.

"Look, can we just talk without our weapons? We mean no harm. I'm Glenn, this is Daryl." _Glenn _said, slowly lowering his gun. Jay, in turn, lowered hers a bit. Dan didn't budge, neither did Roxanne. Or _Daryl. _

"Glenn?" A small voice piped up, taking all of the attention off of the task at hand. Glenn looked over toward the pharmacy's counter and saw a head of dirty blonde hair pop up.

"Oh my god…" Glenn gasped, dropping his gun to the ground. Daryl's eyes almost popped out of his head as he lowered his crossbow.

"Sophia…?"

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_Sophia Peletier, 13 years old. Short dirty blonde hair, green eyes and freckle dusted cheeks. She's the product of a broken home. Her daddy beat her mom and looked at Sophia with a dirty twinkle in his eye while her mom cowered and made sure to protect Sophia by taking the beatings all to herself. Her daddy was attacked by a walker. Her mom, however… Sophia got separated from her group early on. __She was chased by a walker deep into the forest and yelled for help and cried for her mom. Roxanne heard the yells and ran to the source of the sound as fast as she could and saw Sophia trip over a rock. Roxanne boomed; "Hey ugly!" and let a bullet fly that penetrated through the walker's skull. After realizing what happened, Sophia clung to Roxanne for dear life and cried about how she couldn't find her mom. Roxanne was losing daylight and the sound of her gun was sure to bring walkers, so she had no choice but to take Sophia with her, promising that they would look for Sophia's group the next day. They didn't start looking for a week, as Sophia fell ill and Roxanne insisted on taking care of the girl. After a week, Roxanne took Sophia out to find her group. They eventually found the highway, along with the car that had the words __'SOPHIA STAY HERE. WE WILL COME EVERY DAY' __painted onto a car's windshield, along with a small pile of food and supplies on the hood of the car. Sophia got so excited and demanded they stay there for the night to see if they come for her. Roxanne proceeded to get into an argument with the girl, saying how it was dangerous and stupid; eventually Roxanne caved in and used her walkie talkie to tell her fellow group-mates that Sophia and herself weren't going to be back until the next day. The two girls… They had water, a jar of peanut butter, couple cans of soup and beans, plus a blanket and flashlight. They stayed the rest of that day. When night came, the little girl bundled herself in the back seat of the car that had the message painted on the windshield while Roxanne sat in the front seat of the car curled up with a book that she'd read a hundred times, using the flashlight to read. Walkers stumbled by the car now and then but they weren't considered a threat until they banged on the windows. Thankfully, none touched the car or noticed the occupants inside of it. They stayed until late afternoon the next day, which was very much… empty. Nobody came by to check if Sophia was there. Not one car was heard in the distance… Nothing. Sophia was heartbroken when Roxanne said they had to go back. Stubborn girl wanted to keep waiting. Roxanne had to almost drag the girl with her._

_The following months… The following 274 days, Sophia was with Roxanne. They grew to depend on each other; Sophia needed Roxanne's wisdom and comfort while Roxanne needed Sophia to pull her out of her emotional shell. They bonded. They became a mother and daughter._

_That isn't going to change anytime soon._

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"Sophia, oh my god… You're alive!" Glenn was so excited that he practically ran over to the counter. He was stopped by Roxanne, who quickly got in the way.

"Back off, asshole. Who the fuck are you and how do you know my daughter?" Roxanne already knew, but she had to be sure. Glenn blanched and looked to Sophia for answers.

"She was part of our group and got lost. Question is, why the hell is she with you and why you callin' her your daughter?" Daryl asked, inching toward them, his crossbow fixated on Roxanne. She turned to him and glared.

"I found her. I _saved_ her… We went to find you and found a stupid car that said to stay there and you'd come for her." - Roxanne paused, her tone becoming menacing. -"You _didn't. _We stayed there a whole 24 hours and there was no sign of you coming, so we left. We moved the hell on. After that, she became my responsibility. She became apart of my group. And after time, she became my daughter."

"Sophia, your mom is still alive. She's still with us. Rick, Carl… They're both alive. Carl has a little sister now, you know?" Glenn started, his voice gentle and inviting. Roxanne saw through those honeyed words and growled at him.

"Hey! Don't you get any fucking ideas. She's mine, she stays. You and your group can die for all I care! She isn't leaving!"

"Mama!" - Sophia rushed around the counter and stepped between the two adults. - "Please, don't do that! I want to see her. I _need _to see her!" Roxanne ignored the girl's pleas and gestured for Glenn to back away. Sophia then turned to Glenn; "Can we all come? I'm not going unless they do too!"

Glenn and Daryl looked at each other, almost as if they were having a silent conversation. It was Daryl who answered;

"Your mom wouldn't forgive us if we left you behind, Sophia…"

"The only way you're getting her is if we all go. Unless you wanna take your chances in a fight with me." Roxanne stated, flexing her trigger finger.

Glenn sighed and scratched the back of his head before nodding; "Alright, fine. You can all come. But you're gonna have to deal with our leader, y'know." Roxanne scoffed and lowered her crossbow.

"Too fucking bad."

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**"That strong mother doesn't tell her cub, Son, stay weak so the wolves can get you. She says, Toughen up, this is reality we are living in."**  
_Lauryn Hill_

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Author's Note: What'd ya think? Should I continue it? Feedback is very much appreciated and motivates me to continue.

Here is a link to a post that shows the faceclaims to each OC character:

dominoduh **dot **tumblr **dot **com /post/62335749055/missing-walking-dead-faceclaim-p ost


	2. A Lack of Innocence

Disclaimer: I don't own The Walking Dead.

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**"All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother." **_Abraham Lincoln_

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"So, tell me about this _home _of yours." Roxanne asked, now sitting in the passenger seat of the car that Glenn and Daryl drove up in. Daryl, in turn, scoffed.

"It's a prison." He grumbled, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Well, doesn't that sound warm and inviting." She replied, sarcasm dripping from her mouth.

"It's a place we've made our own. We've got fences and brick walls. No breakable windows, no blind spots. It's a fortress. We've got running water too, which is pretty sweet." Glenn excitedly said, trying to cut the tension. Daryl knew he should probably be doing the same; they had to convince these people to stay. If not for Carol's sanity, then for the kids.

"That little boy you got with ya. How old is he?" Daryl asked, easing his grip on the steering wheel. Roxanne looked down at her lap and sighed.

"Elliot's 6. And before you ask, no; he isn't ours. He's an orphan. About a month into this apocalypse, my friend Josh and I joined a group. We met Dan and Jay there. It was a pretty big group, around 20 people. One night, biters attacked. They came right out of the fucking lake we were preying near. Yeah, who'd have thought those bastards could swim? Anyways... Elliot's parents were killed. Dan, Jay, Elliot, Josh and I were the only survivors." Roxanne explained, twiddling her thumbs.

"When did you find Sophia?" Daryl asked.

"Who's Josh? Is he dead?" Glenn asked at the same time. Roxanne shook her head and groaned.

"Unless you plan on relaying every bit of information I give you to your high and mighty leader, I'd suggest you stop asking questions. I don't feel like repeating myself a million times." And with that, the rest of the ride was quiet. Until...

"We were at a farm, near the highway. We were dealing with a lot of stuff, so we didn't get to check the car often. After the second week of Sophia being gone... We thought-" Glenn stated, receiving a scoff from Roxanne.

"You thought wrong. Tell me, did her mom go searching? Or did she make you manly men do it while she cried her eyes out?"

"Shut up!" Daryl exclaimed, hitting his hand on the steering wheel, causing Glenn to jump and Roxanne to snicker. Daryl didn't want to sit around and listen to this woman insult his friend. But Roxanne touched a nerve, proving her right and therefore giving her a chance to be smug without any guilt.

"I can't wait to meet this lady, y'know. She's gonna find out what a real mom is." She said, folding her hands behind her head. With a glance to the side mirror, she saw the van behind her that contained what she held close to her heart; Sophia. The sight reminded her of all the times she shared with the girl. Times where she taught the girl how to shoot a gun. Times she's saved the girl's life, and even when hers was saved by a lucky shot once or twice. Even times where she consoled the girl when she cried, lulling her to sleep with extravagant adventures and tales of the life Roxanne led before. Things that this other woman didn't do because she didn't want to get her hands dirty or because she was too upset. The journey to this prison... It was all worth it. Sophia needed closure. She needed to face her demons, as does Roxanne.

"Oh, and what makes a real mom?" Daryl spat, gripping the wheel tight. This lady is a real smug bitch and she's getting on his nerves.

"A protector." Roxanne growled, her voice equally as venomous as his.

Moments later, the prison gates came into view. Roxanne was in awe but refused to show it; she didn't want these people to hold a fortified sanctum like this over her head later when she chose to leave. She didn't plan to stay long. Maybe a few nights of good rest and meals that she herself didn't have to either find or hunt before her little family parts ways with these strangers.

After a little bit of biter killing to get through the entrance gate, Roxanne was met with quite a sight. A small group of people had come out to see what the commotion about. A scruffy old man, a tall and stubbly man, a kid with a sheriff's hat on, a black woman with a pair of swords on her back and a pretty brunette who looks not so innocent. So cautious. But... Why wouldn't they be? Their men left in one car to go get supplies and came back with a van in tow, full of survivors.

Roxanne got out of the car and leaned against it; she should make them come to her. In her mind, she's the one to be thanked, not them. The tall man with short brown hair and a stubby overgrown 5 o'clock shadow walked over to Daryl and they started whispering. Roxanne was counting how many seconds it took for this man, the leader of this new group, to come over and interrogate her.

It took 20 seconds.

"I'm Rick Grimes. I'm the, uh.. leader of this group." - Roxanne noted how unsure he sounded and mentally scoffed at the lack of confidence this man possesses. - "I understand you... found her."

"Yep." She replied, looking him in the eyes before continuing; "I understand you have room to accommodate my people." Rick let out a sigh of relief before nodding.

"Yes, we do." - He then looked to the van that was parked behind the car that Roxanne came in and gestured to it. - "They can come out now. We won't hurt them."

"I'd hope not. Besides Blondie, I've got a 6 year old and his parents in there. I don't need you blowing them to smithereens." She remarked, gesturing to the guard tower in the distance that held a sniper. Rick nodded and made a gesture to the man in the tower, telling him to back down. In turn, Roxanne turned to the van and nodded her head, causing the doors of the van to fly open. One after another, people piled out and came over to stand opposite of Rick; Sophia made a point to hold Roxanne's hand. Rick's jaw slouched as he looked Sophia over. She grew up, you can tell from her eyes.

"Hi Mr. Grimes." Sophia muttered, suddenly becoming shy. The corner of Roxanne's mouth twitched upwards; she'd seen this kid mouth off about what she'd like to say to former group-mates but seeing an old group-mate in person renders her speechless. Thankfully, Roxanne saw it coming. The girl grew stronger and more confident over the time they spent together, but it's still hard for her.

"Sophia, I'm... I'm so sorry." In the blink of an eye, this man, a leader, crumbled to his knees in front of the teen. Sophia and Roxanne were surprised, though the latter didn't show it.

"Mr. Grimes..."

"No, it was my fault. I'm so sorry, Sophia... I left you to find your way back because of a walker and I shouldn't have done that. I just... I'm so sorry, Sophia."

Moments later, a woman came running outside from the prison, wailing.

"SOPHIA!"

Well, here comes mommy dearest. Roxanne thought, watching the woman run over. At the sight of her mother, Sophia's eyes teared up. She thought this woman, the woman who raised her for 12 years, was dead. She never thought she'd see her again. Roxanne looked down at Sophia and saw the tears threaten to falland she couldn't tell if they were happy or sad ones, so she chose to leave it alone. This was an emotional reunion and she herself couldn't butt in; not unless Sophia wanted her to.

"Oh lord, my baby's alive!" The woman cried as she flung herself towards her daughter. Damn, how old is this lady? Roxanne asked herself as she took in this woman's appearance. Very short grey hair and dark bags under the eyes... Looks like Jaime Lee Curtis to me.

"Mom." If all eyes weren't on the girl who lived, they were now. Her voice was hoarse and full of hatred as she sniffed her tears away. The woman pulled away from her daughter for a moment to look at her.

"Sophia... What's wrong?" She asked, tears still flowing. Sophia took the chance to rip herself out of her mother's grip and take hold of Roxanne's hand again.

"I almost died, mom. A walker almost ate me..." - She looked up at Roxanne with a glazed look and gave a small smile. - "Mama saved me."

"W-what? Honey, I'm your momma." The woman whimpered, reaching out to take Sophia's hand. Sophia, in turn, ripped her hand away as if she had been burnt and turned to look at her mother with a scolding gaze.

"No, you're not! Not anymore! You didn't keep me safe, mom! Not from dead people, not from dad and especially not from you! You didn't teach me anything! I would have died had it not been for mama! She clothed me, fed me and kept me safe and warm. She taught me things you never would have done... She taught me about surviving the end of the world! She didn't just tuck me behind her as she herself hid behind someone else! She put a gun in my hand and told me to shoot! And you know what? I did! And I was good at it! She taught me about independence! Something you know nothing about! Did you even look for me? Or did you have Mr. Grimes, Mr. Walsh and Mr. T-Dog look for you? You may be my mother, Carol Peletier, but you're not my mommy anymore!"

After her tirade, Sophia ripped away from her mother's now trembling hands and rushed back to her safe place; the backseat of her mama's 1993 Chevy G20 van. When the door slammed, all eyes turned to Roxanne. Most of them were confused, but some were filled with anger; Daryl's and Carol's.

"Wow." Roxanne whispered in awe. The level of hostility in Sophia's vocal onslaught against Carol was astonishing and left her dumbfounded. She knew that Sophia was angry and hurt, but not to that extent. After a moment of processing the words that came from Sophia, she was faced with a dilemma; the prison group. She chose to ignore Carol and Daryl's heated gazes and turned to Rick, who was still flabberghasted.

"I'm really sorry for her behavior. She's been bottling all of that up for a long time and the sight of her mother must have busted that bottle right open. Give her a day and she'll be ready to, y'know... come to terms with the new situation." Roxanne said, nodding her head. Rick snapped out of his stupor and nodded frantically, as if he understood. After a few moments of silence, Rick turned to Dan, Jay and Elliot to welcome them and introduce himself. During that process, Carol ran back into the prison while Daryl stayed behind, a focused look on his face as he stared at Roxanne. She, however, ignored his presence and focused on Rick's speech about how the Prison is run and stuff like that. After the speech, more so of a lecture, he escorted the group into the prison to give them the tour; after Sophia came back out to join her Mama, of course.

"Welcome to our little slice of heaven." The old man with a white scruffy beard stated as the small group passed by; he made sure to give the small girl and boy a kind smile.

"Look, Jay Jay! It's Santa!" Elliot squealed, waving excitedly to the old gentleman.

_A little bit of innocence is all we need._

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**"My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her." **_George Washington_

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Author's Note: Oh my goodness, you guys won't believe how happy I am about this kind of reaction! I knew the story was something we haven't seen before in TWD fanfics, but wow! 3

Again, feedback and reviews is greatly appreciated! The more reviews, the more obligated and motivated I become to put out a chapter faster! :D ~Shannon


	3. Confliction

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead. Any similarity between this story and other fanfiction's is completely unintentional.

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**Do not overrate what you have received, nor envy others. He who envies others does not obtain peace of mind.**  
_Buddha_

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The first couple of days with the prison group was not easy for Roxanne and Sophia. Dan, Jay and Elliot, however, were a different story. Dan was quick to befriend the prison's resident doctor/vet, Hershel; also known as the man Elliot knows as 'the man who looks like Santa'. Speaking of Elliot, he has become quite attached to Beth, Hershel's teenage daughter, along with Judith, Rick's infant daughter. Jordan's been keeping to herself. When she's not helping out with chores, guard tower duty and the like, you can find her in her room; writing, drawing, reading, sleeping or just cuddling with Dan or Elliot.

Roxanne and Sophia; those are tough situations to describe. Sophia has been ignoring most of everyone; except for Roxanne, Carl, Elliot, and Judith. She's going out of her way to evade Carol, who has been attempting to corner Sophia since day 2. Sophia has also noticed Daryl's judgmental gaze turn into something else; a look she just couldn't put her finger on. Roxanne, however, knew the look all too well.

_He was brooding._

After a whole full week of being a part of the prison group, Roxanne was at an impasse pertaining to what she should do. The prison was a fortress and that meant safety; safety for her group. She couldn't drag her people away from this, albeit temporary, sanctuary. They've been on the road the whole time. And winter, oh lord don't mention the cold that's soon to come. They barely made it last time, who's to say they could do it again? Cold toes and anger do not mix well. Dan and Elliot like this place, as far as she could tell. It was obvious that Sophia didn't like it just for the fact that her mother was there, which sparks many problems for the teen. And Jay…

Now that was an egg that Roxanne had to crack.

"Hey, can we talk?" Jay looked up from her notebook and saw Roxanne leaning on her doorway with her arms crossed. Jay nodded, gesturing for her friend to join her on the bed.

"S'up?" She asked, quickly looking back down at her current drawing. The corner of Roxanne's mouth twitched upwards as she watched her friend's tongue poke out from between her lips; so focused.

"How do you feel about this place?" Roxanne asked, opting to lean on the metal bed frame.

"In what sense?" Jay replied monotonously, brushing off some nonexistent pencil shavings off her notebook.

"Personal." Roxanne stated, taking note of how Jay's shoulders tensed up.

"I could get used to it…" – She flipped to a new page and started scribbling. – "It's a little too social for my taste, but I guess that's just my anti-social attitude talking. Overall, it's a great place. It's safe and secure, just like they said. They've got a field that they're prepping for crops and they also plan on reinforcing the fence. Plus, Dan and Elliot are bouncing off the walls happy about the change of scenery. They made friends, which is important to them."

"If I were to tell you to pack your stuff right now, what would you say?" Roxanne chose to cut right to the chase, which Jay appreciated.

"I'd say no. At least, not yet anyways. These people have a good set up, for the time being. This prison has potential to become a real fortress, should these people follow through with their plans to upgrade their fences and start farming. But, to be careful, I'd give it a month tops until you start to seriously consider leaving; just to make sure that these people have their heads on the right way and come through." - She stopped drawing and looked directly into Roxanne's blue eyes. - "I know that this is especially hard for you, seeing that you're being faced with a situation that you'd never think you'd find yourself in. Joining a large group and relinquishing your status as leader is tough enough as is for a hard-headed woman like you, but for the group in question to be the group that Sophia strayed from... Not to mention that her biological mother is still alive-"

"I can handle it, Jay. It's fine. My main problem right now is Sophia's well-being. She's the one who's being blind-sided. She's the one whose real mom just came back to damn life. Hell, you might as well say she's having an identity crisis! I mean, damn! Being faced with your past life isn't easy, Jay. She probably feels like she has to choose between us, which she doesn't! I feel a shit storm coming, Jay. And I don't know what to do about it. I don't like not having a solution. I don't like it when she's forced to do something." Roxanne started chewing on her bottom lip and shook her head, fists clenched. Jay noticed her friend becoming anxious and frowned deeply;

"Who says she's going be forced to do anything? All you have to do is sit down with her and talk to her. Explain the situation and let her know that she doesn't have to choose."

"What about her mother, huh? You've seen the looks she gives me; the woman wants to slaughter me in the most gruesome way imaginable! It's pretty damn obvious what's going on here. These people still believe that they can keep a child's innocence intact. They've noticed the changes within Sophia's attitude! You remember how she used to be, Jay. Hell, you and Josh were the ones who told me to teach the girl how to shoot a gun! And then how to skin an animal! And then how to be stealthy! I just... I don't like it! I'm being judged for using my common sense and teaching a girl how to survive, Jay. This drama is pretty friggen redundant and a waste of energy."

"Maybe you should put yourself in her mother's shoes."

"Maybe she should shut up and be grateful that her daughter is alive and ready to take on the world with a closed fist rather than want to cower behind some man with a gun."

"You mean a man with a crossbow." Jay duly noted, giving a small grin. It took Roxanne a moment but soon joined her friend with laughter.

"Good one!"

Unbeknownst to the two women, a man with a crossbow was lingering a few cells down, eavesdropping. As the two women laughed, he was processing what they had discussed. She was right. Sophia was acting just like Carl, if anything. And the boy had been with the group the whole time. So, it's not Roxanne's fault that Sophia is maturing in a certain way. She's changing based on the environment and adapting to survival in the apocalypse. What else was the girl supposed to do? Not many kids can stay innocent within these times.

Daryl doesn't know what Sophia experienced during the time she was gone. How many walkers has she encountered? How many living people? How many deaths has she witnessed? … Has she ever put down someone who was bitten? He couldn't even stomach the thought.

He had to find out. He needed more information. There was no way he could let Roxanne and Carol go head to head. That'd be a whole lot of yelling and screaming and that means the possibility of these people, Sophia included, leaving the prison. He couldn't let Sophia leave; not again. God knows how Carol would react to witnessing Sophia leave on her own free will.

He had to talk to these girls, all of them. He needed to get this situation under control.

_So, Sophia was taught how to skin an animal, huh? Looks like I've got some hunting to do.  
_

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**Love looks through a telescope; envy, through a microscope.** _Josh Billings  
_

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Holy crap, guys! I'm so happy that you guys like the story! I know, it's been a while since my last update but hey I had stuff to do, plus writing block, and I was also flip-flopping between fandoms. WWE, to Big Bang Theory, to HIMYM, back to Walking Dead for a little bit, and then onto some random anime. Now, add Supernatural and The Originals to the list. I mean, by god. I'm going insane. But anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. It's a little boring but it's a necessary scene. Build-up and whatnot.

Remember, reviews keep me motivated and help me put out chapters sooner! Love you guys!


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